Me, Sid, Bono & Jesse

I recently had the opportunity to perform some original music with my band at a small open air venue in suburban Mumbai. The organiser, who is affectionately called ”˜Daddy’ by everyone, has put together this platform for singers, songwriters, bands, artists and performers to put out their original music. So I wrote a few songs and decided to put it together at this place. It was a very short set, about 6 songs or so. The performance went off alright. The band was a little shaky as they were not all familiar with the songs even though we had adequate time to rehearse them. But still it was a starting experience and a testing ground for my songs, as simple as they are. The next gig will be better.

One of the newer bands to watch out for is one called Tough on Tobacco, formed by music virtuoso, Sid Coutto (singer, songwriter and drummer), who has been a part of Zero, Helga’s Fun Castle and is now embarked upon this new project. With quite a few original songs under his belt, this is one to look forward to.

I recently received the DVD of U2’s Popmart Tour Live in Mexico. This was part of their 1997 tour in support of their least favourite album, Pop. This was also infamous for being one of their most expensive and extravagant tours ever. But the band and the music overrides all that. The tour opened on April 25, 1997, but it is this December 3 show that has been captured here for immortality. And what a show it is, from the opening ”˜Mofo’ to the closing ”˜Wake Up Dead Man,’ Bono and the boys blaze through their entire career repertoire (as they always do, with variable setlists). The band enters like prizefighters though the crowd – shot in black and white – and what an audience. Check out versions of ”˜New Year’s Day,’ ”˜Pride (In the Name of Love),’ ”˜Bullet the Blue Sky,’ and ”˜Hold Me Thrill Me.’ And ”˜Discotheque’ is hilarious, Bono and the boys come out of a mirrorball, but what a song. Oh and most of all, that giant screen! This is why U2 are the biggest band of the latter 20^th century, and so far, the first decade of the 21^st.

On a more sombre note, I would like to mark the passing of a dear friend and music aficionado, Jaspal Singh, whom I will always know as Jesse. His love for music culture and performance went hand in hand with his lust for life. In 2006, he was named Young Music Entrepreneur of the Year by the British Council in India and I had the pleasure of working with him on a first-of-its-kind project, called the DJ Union Project. His vision was to bring about a productive collaboration between DJs from the UK and India in a creatively invigorating space. Jesse was a guy who loved his friends and his life of going out and having the time of his life. I would regularly bump into him at the various music events that would keep happening in the city, and we would always make plans to catch up. Sadly those plans will remain as such. Goodbye Jesse, peace, bro.